Feng Shui for the holidays

Hey guys welcome to the Learn Feng Shui podcast where you'll Learn Feng Shui from a classical point of view taking out the myth and Superstition so if you're interested in learning funu Chinese astrology all things Chinese metaphysics as well as the superstitions and myths that connect it all you'll enjoy learning funu with me hey guys welcome to the Christmas episode holiday special of the Learn Feng Shui podcast today we're going to talk about all things Christmas I'm answering some listener questions on how we can apply funu for the holidays hey guys welcome to today's episode a little bit more laidback as we go into the Christmas season I'm Candice Berlanga certified funct practitioner red riing professional with International funu Guild and of course the host of the Learn Feng Shui podcast so today as mentioned we're going to talk about funu for Christmas Funway for the holidays how can we incorporate Funway into our holiday decor and I answer some listener questions um specifically we're going to talk about today where to place your tree color schemes for Christmas fireplace funu I thought that was an interesting one and uh we're just going to cover just some general holiday tips for incorporating Funway into your holiday season all right guys so I posed the question on social media a couple weeks ago which I think I'll start doing this monthly and just uh kind of dedicate a episode each month to questions on a specific subject so I asked you know what are your uh questions for Funway for the holidays funu for Christmas you know Christmas themed episode what would your burning question be and I had some really good ones on there um if you're not a part of the Facebook group it's the Learn Feng Shui community on Facebook it is linked Below in the link tree and so it just says like Learn Feng Shui Community or Facebook group or something so yeah come join us over there I've had a big influx of members I'm trying to keep it active and I want to know what you guys want to know about fun you know because um yeah that'll best tell me you know just let ask me questions and so Stephanie had asked um where is the best placement for a Christmas tree this year um colors for lights and ornaments if possible and so um there is definitely specifics you can place a Christmas tree in a specific area a Christmas tree will activate an area because it has lights and lighting you know will kind of energetically activate that space and so where you could it put it can be quite impactful and I know that people you know when you think of fun you tend to to think of like uh putting something in a specific location in the room or you think of it as a art of placement you know some people think of it that way and so um definitely you know I so I understand um the need to want to put a Christmas tree in the right spot but for that reason we have to kind of look at where it's practic where can we practically put it you know it has to be a space that makes sense to us and although there is areas and sectors and stuff in our home that energetically support fi the fire energy um just putting it in a good location that makes sense to you is going to be your best bet you know maybe you have a traditional area that you usually put your tree at you know um what if you want to put it in the dining room because you eat Christmas dinner there you know or you open your your um presence in a specific area you know uh you want to you want your tree to be seen you know you don't want to be hidden away and so um yeah just placing it in an area that makes the most sense to you a spot where you can really be enjoyed I one of the first purchases that we made when we moved into our house um the the year we bought it we moved in right before Thanksgiving and so for Christmas we're like we had this really tall ceilings in our living room and my husband was like I've always wanted a big Christmas tree and so we went and found a 10ft tall Christmas tree and I'll never not have a 10ft tall Christmas tree again cuz I love it I absolutely love it and I love putting it in the big window up at the front of my home cuz I want it to be seen from the outside you know I just I just think it's so beautiful and so yeah a spot that you like a spot that makes sense to you you don't have to try to have this um perfect spot you know for the tree for for funu purposes um but I will say you know the location within the room can definitely be worked out you know if you do btb and you use that bogwa you can put it in the fame and reputation area that supports fire you could put it in the knowledge and cultivation or the relationship area and those are both Earth energies and they support the fire energy you know fire um the the fire produces the Earth and so it's it's very supportive to that energy and so those would be my my suggestions for the location let's look at color schemes so someone had message also and they asked what to include like on a wreath and for for that um I would say it'd be the same kind of as the color schemes you know colors for lights and ornaments that that was asked uh previously the second part of that question here so you can kind of apply this also and so when we think of Christmas you know we have this energy already so a Christmas tree is this energy of wood and um it also has the fire energy because it's a tall pointy shape and so that would be considered a fire energy and of course the wood because it's a tree even if it's not you know a real tree and so we kind of look at the symbology we can you know look at those color color theories and we can look at what those elements represent to us and so um again looking at the fire energy that's kind of that happiness and that feeling of Christmas you know that we get this time of year kind of uh think back as a child on a really fun Christmas time and it was just that feeling of excitement you know getting ready to be out for the the holiday season you know seeing um the Christmas ornaments go up and just being generally excited about the holiday that's that feeling of Christmas you know and the wood represents family connection expansion and growth you know and so we can add all that in by adding different colors and shapes to our trees or our ornaments or wreaths and for that that inspiration that purification that happiness that fire brings we can add Reds deep purples hot pinks triangular shapes lights and uh pointy shapes you know uh for wood that symbolizes New Beginnings growth self-growth expansion family and connection connection we can do greens light purples long skinny rectangular angular shapes and then of course we do have uh some people like the live trees I know I ordered a live um centerpiece from some little girls that were selling you know some some stuff to go to Camp um and so and it just made my house smell Beautiful my house smells like Evergreens now and so yeah live plants uh poinsettas you know uh we kind of have that I know I do an episode um uh the three friends of winter you know uh so we can kind of include those which are the plants of pine plum blossom and bamboo so there's might be some alternative plants you want to add to your decor and your scheme and those are said to represent strength perseverance longevity steadfastness and resilience because they're very resilient they're some of the only plants that still are growing in the winter season they actually thrive in the winter season so we can add that in and that all of course adds the element of wood and and all the things I described uh above and so metal if we want to add to metal energy we can think of communication celebration Joy um and this can be added by adding iridescent the whites the metallic rainbow colors circular shapes and uh even some of the actions we take so like for example drinking wine wine is represented by the metal element you know and so that can we can add it in that way I'm all for a glass of wine and um think of that connection we have with our family that you know usually uh they kind of talk about wh and song you know it makes you chatty you know we want to talk to our family over a glass of wine you know and so that represents that metal energy if we want to add a little bit of water energy which represents wisdom movement progress we can add Blues blacks and even like icicles and wavy type shap apes and uh if we've set out do like a tablescape you can do crystals and stemware that's really nice so if we think of Earth uh the Earth Energy we can do um which represents like that comfort that nurturing the mother energy you know uh which I feel like is makes your holiday kind of cozy you can add like those muted yellows the gold also represent the Earth Energy Square shapes but also cooking and baking do represent the element of Earth it's that nurturing energy so those are some kind of a guides for color schemes for um for that holiday season and if you'd like to learn a little bit more or want more specifics on the Christmas tree or you're just a visual learner and maybe you just want to go in more depth I highly recommend you check out the video I'm going to link below it's my funu colleague Wendy Ying she does more of the btb style of funu so if you follow that you might want to check that out as far as placement goes but the as far as like the colors and elements and everything like that was heavily inspired uh by her video and including that in today's show so thanks to her and I'll link that below if you'd like to check that out highly recommend it all right so next question Amanda asked what about fireplace fun and um you know I actually I was like I could probably do a full episode on this cuz I started brainstorming last night and I was like there is a lot to say about a fireplace and so obviously again just like the Christmas tree the sector of your house that has this fireplace in it obviously it's going to be activated by the uh fire energy and again there's areas in our in our home um that energetically support fire and some that do not you know uh if we think of that bwa or that that mapping the energy mapping of a home you know in the areas that support fire are going to be like the South the Northeast um and uh the Southwest you know those are going to be those are Earth and uh fire sectors and so those will support it and again if you do btb it's going to be the fam reputation the self- knowledge cultivation and the relationship sectors are those sectors that uh can support that uh fire energy and so um another thing so you know we we there's definitely assessments we can do that are very um that could be be very detailed you know um about a fireplace because again it is activating area and if it's uh not a not a good area you know there could be issues usually a fire can create health issues just like the way a stove you know if it's an um a negative location it can create some health issues long term and so to me the fireplace would be much the same um but honestly it kind of depends on how you how often you use it you know if you're just using it kind of seasonally then I I don't think that it's going to have an ill effect on your health even if it's in you know kind of a weird area you know maybe you want to check like the flying starters for the year um and if it's something you don't use a lot and you're going to want to use it one time I think you'll be just fine but kind of going back to like what we said for the Christmas tree um the location the location within her room or the home doesn't make sense to you I think we've all been in a home where we felt like the fireplace was like in a really odd spot or like a weird spot and you're like I would never use that fireplace it's so weird looking you know uh maybe your intuition is telling you something's off about that fireplace um and you know maybe you can avoid that so another thing about the fireplace is that you know we don't have the the so back in the day when they used to do you know make homes and stuff like that they would usually have a hearth in the home that would be kind of central to the home and it would not only just be used to warm warm the home but to also cook on and so we have this this kind of um you know connotation of you know this uh fire that was kept going all the time you know fires were not generally put out you know um just like kind of what I talked about with the cooking God it was only generally put out maybe one time a year and then relit or something like that just kind of symbolically cleaned and stuff like that and so uh we don't generally have that the closest we have to that would be our stove we don't use our stoves a lot you know uh but the fireplace that does have real fire to it you know and so um when when we kind of look at it that way you know it it's not as impactful in our today's society when we don't use it for daily use you know and so to me I think just doesn't make sense you know um making sure there's not like some kind of health issues in the home after continually using it I think you should be fine but even just keeping it clean and keeping it safe you know we want to make sure we're practicing safety around our fireplace uh making sure it's cleaned out so it doesn't have debris that could you know possibly catch a home on fire or anything like that and um you know one of the ways we can really use that though is as a family gathering area so just like I talked about a minute ago you know it was this family gathering area people Ed to warm up you know um they it represents you know this happiness this inspiration and of course the purification because it's that fire energy you know and it so it represents all these things but also it has that grounding energy that Earth Energy because it's made out of masonery and stone you know it's probably again it's probably the closest thing we have in our home to an Old-Fashioned Hearth you know so um that Earth Energy remember represents that nurturing comforting energy and like that motherly love if we think of a mother's cooking you know it it almost represents that type of thing too um I use this example cuz I actually did this this is a topic for my radio show but bringing it to the podcast now but I use the example um my my husband's uh last night was talking to my brother-in-law and he was like kind of bragging like oh mom made me some food today you know and again my husband's a Hispanic you know so we love uh Mexican cooking you know and uh his mom made some Fresh Tortillas and she made like some you know some meat and stuff and she sent him over a plate and I just thought that was so sweet but I was you know kind of telling him there's nothing like a mother's cooking you know um if if you have if you had a mother that made that good home cooking there's just like something very healing nurturing and like loving comforting about the just a warm plate of like homecook like food from your childhood you know and so kind of think of the fireplace representing that same type of thing and so doing things like roasting your marshmallows making s'mores you know um things like that you know if there's popcorn you can can make in the you know have a little popper that you can stick in under the fire and make popcorn you know and so you can also add Decor that makes you feel like Christmas you know things that you remember those core memories of Christmas um you can you know maybe put things there uh like those holiday heirlooms that we kind of collect every time they don't have to be valuable but something that reminds you of your childhood and that kind of motherly affection you know and um I to me I think that's how we can best use a fireplace you know use it for those family gatherings and really think of it as an area that uh connects us to our family and one thing I'll add to that that I almost forgot to say is that you know I live in a warmer climate I live in in Texas and we don't get um super harsh not all year long so it'll be cold but it's not super harsh and so um if you're using the fireplace less you know maybe you're like I really want to use that fireplace more a swap out for some candles okay you could uh just do the battery candles if you don't really want the Open Flame or you you know I I've seen a lot of people and they kind of swap out um and they don't put wood in there and maybe they just burn some candles in the fireplace so you can still have that fire energy in the area without having to light a fire um I also had a friend reach out to me afterwards and she was like you know I had a question what do you do if you're traveling and you're not home during the holidays and I was like oh my gosh I didn't even think about that I thought that was a great question um and uh you know my answer to that I think would be to take some something that reminds you of home something that's comforting to you you know maybe you have a little family photo you travel with you know just depending maybe your family's not around uh maybe you're even just estranged from family you know do do something that brings you comfort during the holiday it doesn't have to be a family photo especially if there's some you know contention there you're not super close or anything um but something that that makes you feel good around the holidays you know is is what you're going to want to do um so that could also just be an item of clothing that makes you feel good uh maybe you have a tradition you know you uh eat a certain meal or you know you have a certain treat that you usually use around the H eat around the holidays or um some sort of tradition you know maybe if you're uh not in town maybe you find a little you know holiday event to go to or or something like that you know really just try to make it your own you know sometimes we are without family sometimes we are working and sometimes we are uh maybe we're out of town or we're traveling for that time and so just finding something that you can find comfort in I think is uh very very relevant you know again you can't it's hard to apply funu when you're at a hotel or you're at uh you know a spot that's not your home and so I think just the action and the activities that you do around that time that make you feel comforted make you feel good um I think that's really important to observe and do too I think there's really been a rise honestly I've seen it the past like 10 years but really with the uh rise of social media Instagram having these perfect Christmases beautiful trees a spotless home you know just a perfectly executed and curated Christmas decor and items you know I think it's gorgeous it's beautiful and you know that's that's perfectly okay to do um however we do also want to make sure that we're keeping those those memories of Christmas you know it's something we've celebrated our whole life you know put your kids tacky ornaments up somewhere I'll just say it uh you're going to get handprint ornaments you're going to get little pictures of them making silly faces tacked onto an ornament you know you're going to get unperfect hand painted things treasure those things put those things up um again maybe it's a thing where you could make a little you know Garland across The Hearth or the the fireplace there and you could put the ornaments there you know um so yeah just make it really special make sure your children know that you know let that be a memory for them you know let that be a memory of putting up their items proudly little items that they made and I think every year when we take those items out of the boxes you know and we really do think like oh this was this I remember this year I got that or I remember putting this on the Christmas tree every year I know my mom uh bequeathed me a bunch of ornaments uh from our childhood and I really do like putting those ornaments up on the tree and every year we kind of look through them and we're like oh I remember you know this from the you know the 80s you know when I was a kid I remember decorating our tree with this so yeah just make it magical make it fun don't be so you know curated and you know it doesn't have to be that way um if you are one that does that I mean that's again perfectly fine but make sure you do find a spot for those items that hold that meaning and speaking of items that have meaning if you have items that have a bad association with them you know maybe you went Christmas shopping and uh you know picked out the ornaments you have now with your you know your ex-husband or you know or a friend that you're estranged with or something like that then you know it might be time to update your Christmas ornaments you know so get rid of things that have bad associations with them have negative associations or maybe you were just in a different you know season of life and that kind of reminds you of in that place you used to be you know and U you know so yeah we don't want things around us we want our homes to support us we want our homes to feel good you know to come home to and when we look at that and we're like oh man I don't even want to decorate cuz I remember buying that ornament with you know that or whatever then get rid of it you know and that also includes a photos of a family members or friends that we're just really not friends with anymore so might be time to start something new go into a new season of Life guys and just kind of a closing thought here I had a friend that lost her mom this year and it was actually in a very short amount of time she lost her aunt and then she lost her mother and so it's the first holiday season without her mom and you know she kind of sent me a message earlier and she was asking you know how I was whatever and I was asking her how she's holding up if she's ready for Christmas you know and she's just not in it you know she doesn't want to celebrate and I told her you know I can't imagine you know the first Christmas without you know a loved one that that has to be so hard you know especially when they were the ones that made it special and made it magical you know um and so to that I would say do something to honor that loved one you know uh you don't have to celebrate Christmas you don't have to be happy you don't have to have this false you know positivity you don't have to uh fake it you know don't do any of those things feel your feelings be in your grief that's that's okay you know you don't have to do any of the things that you know anybody wants you to do you can totally you know be mad you can be mad and be upset and be angry and feel all the things you know um but do something to honor that relative you know maybe um there's something that they would do around the holidays to uh you know that that was usually associated with them so for example my when we lost my husband's grandmother you know um she always had the big Christmas gathering at her house and she no matter how I mean we have tons of of cousins and stuff like that my husband and but she always had a little bag for each of the kids a little stocking or bag she put little treats and all kinds of little things and now my mother-in-law does that you know she she wants to be the one that has like the little stocking for the kids you know and so you know she kind of took on that that role you know um she now does the you know hosts the holiday and has the cooking and everything and so maybe that's the you know the part you want to fill maybe you want to fill in the part that they left off at you know maybe you want to take that on uh or maybe it's just a something that you guys used to do together during the holiday season you know um maybe you guys used to go look at Christmas lights or go see Santa or whatever you know continue that tradition with your family you know and you know and think of them you know kind of Honor them during that time maybe just get together and share memories or maybe you just cook or bake something that they used to bake you know and so just doing something I think that has Association and honoring them can be you know it makes it feel like you're not ignoring your feelings you know you don't want to ignore your feelings um I know for um Thanksgiving my my daughter her friend lost their dad in 20120 I mean so it's it's only been three years you know very recent still and I know that they they actually took him you know they have the earn and they actually just took him and they set him up for you know at Thanksgiving the thanks Thanksgiving um you know they had a little spot for him which I thought was amazing you know so I mean doing something like that if it's going to make you feel better if it makes you you know honor that person if it makes you feel like connected to them still and it's still very fresh then do those things you know I highly suggest doing something to honor that loved one all right guys well I hope you enjoyed today's holiday centered episode I just kind of wanted to make a light fun one I'll be again asking questions again for J January and you know seeing what what you guys want to know you guys have an amazing holiday I will be gone the next two weeks 202nd and 29th I'll be back January 5th with January energy update and we'll be going into the year of the dragon pretty soon after that so we'll be we'll be getting all that together uh don't forget I will have I want to do a New Year's party where we do the zodiac sign forcast and um I'm actually waiting on my book to come for of the 2020 for Chinese Almanac which I get all my information out of for the forecast and so I I'm waiting to do that I'll have that again announcement in January but I'm thinking it's going to be towards the middle of January so stay tuned for that I want to have you guys on do a little live you know session and just kind of make it fun so we'll be ringing in the year of the dragon with our zodiac forecast so look forward to that anyway you guys have an amazing Christmas an amazing New Year's and I'll catch you guys in 2024 for free energy mapping of your floor plan please check the link in the show notes to support today's podcast go to learnfengshui.com sign up for emails leave a review and share with your family and friends